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Orthography-induced length contrasts in the second language phonological systems of L2 speakers of English : evidence from minimal pairs

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Bassetti, Bene, Sokolović-Perović, Mirjana, Mairano, Paolo and Cerni, Tania (2018) Orthography-induced length contrasts in the second language phonological systems of L2 speakers of English : evidence from minimal pairs. Language and Speech, 61 (4). pp. 577-597. doi:10.1177/0023830918780141

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0023830918780141

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Abstract

Research shows that the orthographic forms (“spellings”) of second language (L2) words affect speech production in L2 speakers. This study investigated whether English orthographic forms lead L2 speakers to produce English homophonic word pairs as phonological minimal pairs. Targets were 33 orthographic minimal pairs, that is to say homophonic words that would be pronounced as phonological minimal pairs if orthography affects pronunciation. Word pairs contained the same target sound spelled with one letter or two, such as the /n/ in finish and Finnish (both /ˈfɪnɪʃ/ in Standard British English). To test for effects of length and type of L2 exposure, we compared Italian instructed learners of English, Italian-English late bilinguals with lengthy naturalistic exposure, and English natives. A reading-aloud task revealed that Italian speakers of EnglishL2 produce two English homophonic words as a minimal pair distinguished by different consonant or vowel length, for instance producing the target /ˈfɪnɪʃ/ with a short [n] or a long [nː] to reflect the number of consonant letters in the spelling of the words finish and Finnish. Similar effects were found on the pronunciation of vowels, for instance in the orthographic pair scene-seen (both /siːn/). Naturalistic exposure did not reduce orthographic effects, as effects were found both in learners and in late bilinguals living in an English-speaking environment. It appears that the orthographic form of L2 words can result in the establishment of a phonological contrast that does not exist in the target language. Results have implications for models of L2 phonological development.

Item Type: Journal Article
Subjects: P Language and Literature > PE English
Divisions: Faculty of Social Sciences > Centre for Applied Linguistics
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): English language -- Orthography and spelling, Second language acquisition
Journal or Publication Title: Language and Speech
Publisher: Sage
ISSN: 1756-6053
Official Date: 1 December 2018
Dates:
DateEvent
1 December 2018Published
18 June 2018Available
9 April 2018Accepted
Volume: 61
Number: 4
Page Range: pp. 577-597
DOI: 10.1177/0023830918780141
Status: Peer Reviewed
Publication Status: Published
Access rights to Published version: Restricted or Subscription Access
RIOXX Funder/Project Grant:
Project/Grant IDRIOXX Funder NameFunder ID
RPG2013180Leverhulme Trusthttp://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000275

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